Infants and other incontinent individuals wear absorbent articles such as incontinent pads and diapers to receive and contain urine and other body exudates. Absorbent articles function both to contain discharged materials and to isolate these materials from the body of the wearer and from the wearer's garments and bed clothing. Disposable absorbent articles having many different basic designs are known to the art.
The absorbent capacity of an absorbent article necessary to provide containment of bodily fluids without leaking is quite different between daytime and overnight use. Because wear time is usually longer during overnight use as compared to daytime use, the quantity of bodily fluids discharged during overnight use is typically greater than the quantity of bodily fluids discharged during daytime use. Even though the absorbent capacity requirements are quite different, absorbent articles having one level of absorbent capacity are typically used for both daytime and overnight use. Unfortunately, the absorbent capacity is sometimes insufficient for overnight use and the absorbent article leaks.
One solution to the above problem is to increase the level of absorbent capacity of the absorbent article. However, increasing the level of absorbent capacity to meet overnight needs leads to under utilized materials and cost penalties for all daytime uses.
Another solution to the above problem is to use products having different levels of absorbent capacity. An absorbent article having a higher level of absorbent capacity is used during overnight use and an absorbent article having a lower level of absorbent capacity is used during daytime use. However, absorbent articles having different levels of absorbent capacity are currently sold in separate packages, which is both costly and inconvenient for consumers.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a package containing absorbent articles including at least one first absorbent article having a predetermined absorbent capacity, and at least one second absorbent article having a predetermined absorbent capacity which is greater than the absorbent capacity of the first absorbent article.
The above and other objectives of the present invention will be more readily apparent when considered in reference to the following description and when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.